why are vitamins named and numbered the way they are? Why aren’t others called vitamins”

Question

We have vitamin b6 and b12 but I’ve never seen others. I’ve seen vitamin A but never a number with it. How did we get here? Similarly, why aren’t other often grouped supplement ingredients labeled as vitamins? Thinking of Omegas, fish oil, niacin etc. did we run out of letters? Is there a characteristic needed to be called vitamin?

In: Other

Answer 1

Vitamins are defined by the things we can’t live without. You’ve identified certain vitamins that are vital for humans to function that we can’t synthesize ourselves. Vitamin C for instance is a vitamin for humans, but not for cats because they can make it themselves.